About ten years ago the folks buying images for Barnes and Noble's calendars found my work. Ever since then, I've had the cover of their "Props" calendar. Not a huge gig $$$$ wise, but great exposure and enough money to buoy the hangar fund a bit. Most of my aviation stock sells either through me directly, or through my friend George Hall ( who passed away a few years ago), his agency is "Check Six". Getty and Corbis have been after George's wife to sell, but she's reluctant to give up the great business George built, largely for sentimental reasons. Nicki Hall does a great job and I get regular checks for stock they've sold.

I need to get on the ball and start submitting some work to stock agencies to see if there is any interest. I also need to get a lot of practice under my belt and a lot of reading yet to do. ...

"tomorrow, I'll make a list of things to do"... well maybe next week... or after the Holidays... I'm going to try to learn how to surf next week in Oahu. I've got a friend there who says he can even teach an old guy like me...

Canon contacted me about sending in the Mark III but I told them I had to shoot with it over the Holidays and I'd send it in January. They say 7 to 10 days in the shop and they extend the warranty another full year - that's sweet. Gonna try to get good Banzai pipeline shots. Been playing with mircoadjustments and it seems to help a little. 1 in every 10 frames though is not inspiring.

How much stock should one have before starting to talk to stock agencies? I'd like to figure out how to start setting goals for myself and moving forward in a more professional way. It'll take years, but hey... I have years.

Here's one that flies... even if it's not an airplane, it's one hell of a dive-bomber!

I'm soon going to leave to my hometown to spend the holiday season with my closest ones and I'm going to leave all work related stuff back here (OK, I will take my camera with me, just in case ). But before I leave, with this little christmas card I want to wish you all the most peaceful holiday time:

http://mmniemi.aviation.fi/sekalaisia/xmas_07_en.jpg

Mikko

BA31DriverRegistered: Dec 24, 2004Total Posts: 549Country: Canada

Great shot blueangle, would love to be there with my camera. As a newly minted owner of a 1Dmk3, I thought I would share a couple of my first aviation shots with it. Even tried out the AI servo just for kicks and it worked fine. I'm not used to using it, and never tried it on my 20D/40D, but it should be fun in the future. http://i.pbase.com/o4/01/755801/1/90609949.B2WtZA6q.8672.jpg

Nice shots Pat - and welcome to the world of MarkIII ! I hope to hear of and see a lot of great images from yours as mine is going in to the shop for the mirror upgrade as soon as I'm back from Hawaii.

Thanks Pat. I love that shot in the snow - it reminds me of life in Kansas growing up during winter. We don't get much snow down here and if we do - it has melted before I can get somewhere to take a picture. So posting that one is the right shot at the right time!

I've been reading and looking at this thread for quite a few months and have not responded so far. The pictures and responses I have read here have been of the highest quality I have ever witnessed. I am an amateur photographer at best and have been looking at these pictures in awe! I shoot mostly sports pictures of my son and his leagues but I've always wanted to expand my horizons.

Thanks to all of you for sharing your incredible pictures and remarkable knowledge of photography in this brilliant thread.

No. 8563 was built in 1944 and came to Alaska in 1946, shortly after WWII where she was assigned to Elmendorf AFB’s 10th Air Rescue Squadron.

In the spring of 1948 she was dispatched on her last mission. It was reported that while making a slick (glassy) water landing at a lake near near Mt. McKinley, she dug a float and was damaged. The Air Force wrote her off, pushed her back in the black spruce trees where she lay at the mercy of the elements, vandals and target shooters for the next 25 years until the Ketchum family helicoptered her back to Anchorage. Restoration was started in 1973.